DATE=09/01/02
EDITORIAL NUMBER=0-10103

LABOR DAY

Today [September 2^nd] is Labor Day in the United States, a time to honor the contributions American workers have made to the freest and greatest economic power on earth.

On September 11^th, 2001, a symbol of that economic power -- the World Trade Center in New York City -- was savagely attacked by terrorists. At the same time, a symbol of America's military power -- the Pentagon -- was attacked near Washington, D.C. More than three-thousand men, women, and children were killed. Shortly, after the attacks, President George W. Bush visited workers at the clean-up site. He drew an emotional response when he vowed "the people who knocked these buildings down will hear from all of us soon."

The task of clearing the wreckage of the World Trade Center was daunting. In addition to the twin one-hundred-ten story towers, five other buildings were destroyed. The debris covered over six hectares, stood ten stories above street level and reached a depth of seven stories below street level. Those in change of the operation vowed the clean-up would be finished in twelve months. They did it in eight.

Construction workers, firefighters, and volunteers from every walk of life worked around the clock, in bitter cold and rain, to clear the ruins. They paused only to listen for signs of life. Personal effects -- a child's toy, a pocketbook, a set of keys -- all that remained of a life lost, were carefully collected. More than one million six-hundred thousand tons of debris were removed.

At the Pentagon, workers had to be ordered to take time off for the Christmas holiday. They wanted to continue working around the clock. Six months after the attack, repairs were completed.

"Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of America," President George W. Bush said. "These acts shattered steel," he said, "but they cannot dent the steel of American resolve."

That resolve was soon evident. In Afghanistan, a U.S.-led coalition destroyed the Taleban regime that had sponsored the al-Qaida terrorists who carried out the September 11^th attacks. Thousands of Taleban troops and al-Qaida terrorists were killed, captured, or put to flight. Referring to the terrorists, President Bush said, "They thought that we were a selfish nation. . . that we weren't tough, that we didn't have character. They're learning otherwise."